US, Saudi Arabia are close to an agreement to normalize relations with Israel
(VOVWORLD) - Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan said on Monday that bilateral agreements with the United States were “very, very close” as Riyadh seeks to secure defense and security pacts with the kingdom in exchange for normalizing relations with Israel.
 Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan (Photo: AFP/ VNA) |
The agreement to normalize relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel is a plan with US participation, in which Washington commits to cooperate with Riyadh on defense, security and nuclear issues. In exchange for normalizing relations, Arab countries and Washington also pushed Israel to agree to a roadmap for a Palestinian state, something Prime Minister Netanyahu has repeatedly refused.
The same day, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at a special meeting of the World Economic Forum in Riyadh that a US-Saudi security pact with Saudi Arabia was near “completion.”
Blinken said Monday diplomacy has halted regional escalation since the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict, including after unprecedented open clashes between Iran and Israel earlier this month.